It’s not always about what you cut out of your diet that can help you lose weight: What you choose to put on your plate can sometimes help you shed pounds, too. Common advice suggests focusing on protein and fiber to increase the feeling of fullness and reduce overeating. But every so often, a specific food garners attention for its stay-slim benefits. Now, research suggests that eating okra can help protect against weight gain due to a specific metabolic advantage it offers.
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A new study explored how okra impacts metabolism.
The latest findings come from a study published this month in the journal Brain Research. Using a group of rats that had been overfed, a team of scientists sought to investigate whether adding okra to their diets could help bring down a specific type of brain inflammation that helps regulate appetite.
Typically, this underlying change can exacerbate the negative effects of overeating by spiking insulin resistance, making it harder for the body to regulate blood sugar levels and accurately gauge hunger levels.
For the study, the rats were split into different groups: One in which they were overfed by having the number of pups in their litter cut back to just three while feeding from their mother, and another in which they were fed a typical amount. The groups were then split again, with overfed and normally fed rats each divided into groups whose diets were supplemented with okra and another which wasn’t.
Scientists then measured the rats’ body weight, blood sugar levels, food and water intake, muscle mass, and accumulated fat while partaking in their prescribed diets. Meanwhile, they recorded systemic insulin sensitivity and monitored brain inflammation.
Rats with okra in their diet saw significant improvements.
At the end of the study, the scientists found significant health differences between the groups. The overfed rats without okra in their diets saw a spike in triglycerides in their blood, became definitively obese, saw increases in insulin resistance, and showed signs of inflammation in the area of the brain controlling appetite and insulin regulation.
On the other hand, things were much different for the rats with okra in their diet. Besides not developing any of the other negative health markers related to weight or bloodwork, they had a decrease in low-level brain inflammation, while also showing less cellular stress and insulin resistance overall.
Interestingly, both groups of rats who weren’t overfed saw no changes in their health markers, regardless of okra intake, per PsyPost.
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Here’s what this could mean for weight loss.
The authors admitted there were some limitations to their study, including that they didn’t study insulin levels in the pancreas (and how okra might affect it), nor did they consider other metabolic factors that might’ve been affected by okra consumption.
However, given the disparity in results seen between overfed and non-overfed rats, the findings could suggest that okra could be a useful tool in helping people with chronic or long-term metabolic conditions get a handle on how often they eat and help stabilize their blood sugar levels.
Of course, the largest limitation to date on the study is that it was performed on rats. The team said that further clinical trials in humans could help better understand the effectiveness of okra on metabolic issues and obesity.
Previous research found similar okra benefits.
This isn’t the first time researchers have examined how okra might help with weight loss. In a study published in November 2022 in the journal Food & Function, researchers fed mice a high-fat diet to test something known as the okra complex and how it could be useful in treating obesity.
They found that mice consuming okra reduced their overall body fat, lowered blood sugar, dropped cholesterol and triglycerides, and reduced the severity of their fatty livers.
The team said this was likely due to the okra complex helping the body to access the protein kinase A (PKA) pathway. Not only does this help the body break down existing fat, but it also helps it convert it to a more accessible “brown fat” that it can burn to regulate temperature and reduce heat.
Ultimately, the team said the findings suggest that okra could be a helpful tool in metabolic treatment for weight loss (especially in the reduction of body fat), as well as underlying health issues such as insulin resistance and fatty liver disease.
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The takeaway:
Looking for a new green to add to your diet? In a new study, scientists found that rats that had been overfed early in life saw a significant improvement in major health markers when they were fed okra compared to those who didn’t eat the vegetable.
Specifically, scientists noted that okra-consuming rats had lower levels of inflammation in an area of the brain that helps regulate hunger and insulin levels in the blood. While human trials are needed, they concluded that okra might be a valuable tool for treating metabolic disorders, pending further research.
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